10-Day Tour: Beijing, Xi'an, Chongqing, Dazu, Shanghai

Arrive in Beijing, the starting city of this 10-day China tour through Beijing, Xi'an, Chongqing, Dazu, and Shanghai. Your guide greets you at the airport and transfers you by private vehicle to your hotel. Check in and rest after the international flight, using free time to settle in and adjust to the time difference before Temple of Heaven and Forbidden City sightseeing tomorrow.

Visit the Temple of Heaven, where Ming and Qing emperors once prayed for good harvests, and walk the park grounds used by local residents today. Continue to Tiananmen Square, then enter the Forbidden City, the former imperial palace complex with nearly six centuries of history. Your guide explains the main halls, courtyards, and museum collections as you move from south to north through the palace axis before returning to the hotel.

Travel about 80 kilometers northeast of Beijing to the Mutianyu Great Wall, a section known for closely spaced watchtowers and brick battlements on both sides of the wall. Walk the restored ramparts among the forested ridges, then enjoy a late lunch at a local restaurant before returning to the city center. The afternoon ride gives time to rest after the climb and prepare for the Summer Palace visit and flight to Xi'an tomorrow.

Visit the Summer Palace, the large Qing-dynasty imperial garden on Kunming Lake, noted for lakeside corridors, hilltop temples, and classic Chinese garden design along the shore. After lunch, transfer for your flight to Xi'an. Upon arrival, your local guide meets you and takes you to the hotel for two nights before the Terracotta Warriors excursion and Muslim Quarter free time tomorrow.

Visit the Terracotta Warriors Museum, one of the major archaeological finds of the twentieth century, and walk among the excavated pits of life-size clay soldiers, horses, and chariots. After returning to the city, spend free time in the Muslim Quarter, where antique shops, food stalls, and small teahouses line the lanes. Use the afternoon at your own pace before overnighting again in Xi'an.

In the morning, visit the Shaanxi History Museum for collections that explain Xi'an's long role as a Chinese capital and cultural center. Continue to the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, linked to the monk Xuanzang and completed in 652, an important Tang-dynasty Buddhist landmark. After sightseeing, fly to Chongqing and transfer to your hotel for three nights before the mountain-city tour and Dazu Rock Carvings day trip.

After breakfast, visit the Liberation Monument shopping district, then watch the Liziba light rail pass through a residential building. Continue to Ciqikou, a historic street of bluestone lanes and traditional shops. In the afternoon, walk Shibati and Shancheng Lane for local street life, and finish at Hongyadong, the hillside stilt-house complex overlooking the confluence of the rivers, before overnighting again in Chongqing.

After breakfast, drive to Dazu for a day among the rock carvings. At Beishan, explore the Dafowan cliff niches with thousands of statues along a long crescent-shaped face. Continue to Baodingshan to see the large Thousand-Hand Guanyin rock carving and related Buddhist tableaux. Visit the Dazu Museum for context on the protected carving sites and inscriptions, then return to Chongqing for overnight.

This morning, visit The Ring Shopping Park in Chongqing's Liangjiang New Area for shopping, dining, and leisure spaces, then stop at the historic Kuixing Tower, traditionally linked to the god of literature and students seeking good fortune in exams. In the afternoon, fly to Shanghai and transfer to your hotel for one overnight stay before Yu Garden sightseeing and the airport departure transfer tomorrow.

Visit Yu Garden, a classical Chinese private garden with rockeries, ponds, and Ming-style halls in the Old City area. After sightseeing, your guide escorts you to the airport for the departure flight, closing this 10-day China tour from Beijing through Xi'an, Chongqing, the Dazu Rock Carvings, and Shanghai. Confirm terminal details and boarding timing so luggage and travel documents are ready for check-in.